"It's something that changed me profoundly as well. The vision I have of life changed in Japan. It was absolutely a deep, profound and very, very positive experience. I'm very grateful that I went. Perhaps it was a bit crazy of me at the time to decide to go, but I'm thankful for that moment of craziness.

"Maybe [my time in Japan helped me succeed at Arsenal], because I took a distance from the pressure in Europe and came back with a different viewpoint. I can take more distance from decisions now than I could before."